Buildings, structures and safety

Building Control are responsible for carrying out the recommendations contained in the Guide to Safety at Sports Grounds. It has detailed advice on matters including structure, provisions of gangways, fire escapes, crash barrier design and engineering services. When all matters related to safety are in place a Safety Certificate can be issued.

The Building Control section is responsible for providing advice and guidance on Safety at Sports Grounds, in relation to:

• Crowd control
• Means of escape
• Structural stability
• Access for disabled

Apply for a safety of sports ground certificate

• Apply for a special safety certificate for a sports ground.
• Apply for a special safety certificate for a regulated stand.

Items reviewed during inspection

The Building Control Team can review the following items during an inspection and comment on: 

• Safety Management
• Stewarding
• Structures and Components
• Circulation General
• Exit routes unobstructed
• Controlled Ingress
• Stairs / Ramps
• Concourses and Vomitories
• Emergency Procedures
• Barriers
• Seating Accommodation
• Standing Accommodation
• Disabled Facilities / Areas
• Fire Safety
• Communications
• Electrical / Mechanical
• Medical Provision, First Aid
• Media Provision
• Tidiness

The Sports Ground Management Team must ensure public safety is maintained and that defective infrastructure does not put crowd safety at risk.

Categories of sports grounds

Sports grounds can be divided into three categories which can be outlined as:

• Designated sports stadia with a capacity for 10,000 spectators.
• Sports grounds with one or more regulated stands, with a capacity of 500 spectators.
• Sports grounds which do not have regulated stands.

Stadia in Coventry

• Coventry Building Society Arena
• Butts Park Arena (Coventry Rugby Club)

To ensure compliance with any conditions of the certificate, regular inspections are carried out on match days.

The Safety Advisory Group

Building Control works to protect public safety and co-ordinates the Safety Advisory Group which includes other agencies:

• The Police Service
• The Fire Service
• The Ambulance Service
• St John Ambulance Association